Ex-Car Salesman Tells All: How to Beat the Auto Dealerships at Their Own Game

In February 2004 I worked one educational month as a car salesman. I learned you don’t need a full set of teeth to be a winning car salesman and the nicer a salesman is to a customer, the more that customer overpays. I also learned the car salesman’s playbook. And of course, I’m willing to share. If you want to protect your wallet when you’re buying a new car, here’s how to beat auto dealerships at their own game.

Be Prepared

Even if you deflect the sleaziest sales schemes dealers dish out, you can’t get a good deal without some homework. Don’t step into a showroom without reliability, safety, and pricing information (try Edmunds.com). You should know the mark-up of the car’s sticker price and how much the dealer expects to profit. It makes it almost impossible for the dealers to bluff when you already see their cards.

Call First

Auto makers and dealers do everything in their power to make car buying an emotional experience. They have you sit in plush new leather, soak up new car smell, and punch the gas and hug the turns on the test drive. The salesmen hope, by the time you talk price, you want the car so badly you’ll okay the first number thrown at you. But, ask for the dealer’s best price over the phone, you axe their edge. Lucky enough to snag a telephone quote? It will almost always beat a quote from the showroom. But be warned: Good dealers will smooth talk you into making an “appointment” at the dealership without giving a price.

Hide Your Trade

If you plan to trade in your existing vehicle, don’t let the dealership know it until you have agreed on the price of the new car. Tell them you definitely don’t have a trade-in and then act like you changed your mind. The reason? Dealers use their profit margin on the new car price to make it seem like they are paying thousands of dollars more for your trade-in. Only when you handle the new car and the trade-in separately can you get good deals on both.

Talk Price, Not Payment